It’s wrong to cancel William Penn

January 13, 2024

William Penn lived an incredible life during his 73 years on Earth. At a young age in England, Penn became a Quaker, was disowned by his father, overcame homelessness and was imprisoned several times for sharing his Christian faith. He wrote more than 40 books and pamphlets on Christianity, how to establish a better government order and the importance of freedom. He founded Pennsylvania as a place where people could live in freedom. It was a safe haven for countless millions who fled Europe because of religious persecution. Penn’s “holy experiment” was as beacon of freedom, ...

View from Hickory Heights: Decisions for new year

January 12, 2024

As we begin 2024 there are always decisions to be made. How can we make our life different? What do we carry forward and what do we leave behind? Can I be a better person? How do I accomplish that? I came across something that I think deserves a mention here. It is a different way of looking at things and making those decisions. This came from Mames Mindset. “A wise man once said, Hate had four letters But so does love. Enemies has seven letters But so does friend. Lying has five letters But so does truth. Cry has three letters But so does joy. Negativity has ten ...

People Watching is a spectator sport

January 11, 2024

People Watching is one of the greatest pleasures of traveling. If the traveling happens to be in the flying mode, People Watching is the only pleasure left. Today’s air travel can be grueling. For decades, I’ve been flying in and out of Buffalo, mostly to Boston. It’s just under a two-hour drive to the airport, so each trip essentially begins in our driveway. When everything goes as planned, elapsed time from my driveway to my daughter’s, in Lexington, Massachusetts, is usually five hours. Not bad. Monday, I flew to Beantown – the hard way. The schedules have changed a lot ...

Warm memories of crackling ice

January 6, 2024

As we now enter the depths of another winter, there is one sound of the cold season that I recalls from my youth that I am quite certain that I will never hear again There are many sounds of nature that are very distinctive … the howls of wolves, the crack of lightning, the calls of loons and screech owls, and the cries of hawks and eagles from high overhead.. Add to these the cracking of clear ice as it expands in very cold weather. The only times I can distinctly recall hearing this sound was from when my father, Christian, took me and my older sister, Ruth, ice skating at ...

View from Hickory Heights: Laughter is good medicine

January 5, 2024

We entertained the young folks with our reminiscing. Specifically, we were talking about technology. Technology in my children’s day was far different than it is today. It is no wonder that we get stuck with the modern devices. When my children were growing up, there were no cell phones. The only type of phone was the type that was anchored to the wall or sat on a table. Once we got a phone that was wireless, that was an upgrade. I recall that my son brought us the first portable phone since he was tired of using the old style that we had on the wall. When my husband was doctoring ...

Football loyalty is coat of many colors

January 4, 2024

He finished breakfast, then stood up to leave the restaurant with his friends. As he was pulling on his jacket near our table, I spotted his 49ers t-shirt. Sort of a camel color with red print and logos. I smiled up at him and said, “You are definitely the bravest man in this room.” Puzzled, and not sure about what I meant, he smiled tentatively. I quickly added, “Wearing a 49ers shirt in Steeler and Bills country is very brave.” He grinned and agreed. “When I married her, my wife was a 49ers fan and she gives me these things.” “Then you absolutely have to wear ...